Doctor performed 23 surgeries in his home country
By Sarah Schuch
MLive.com
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Dr. Abdelmajid Jondy doesn’t believe his duty as a surgeon should stay between the four walls of a Flint operating room or even within the borders of the United States.
More than 40 years after leaving Syria, Jondy made a trip back to the Middle East to help the people suffering in the war-torn nation.
Jondy, a general surgeon in Flint, went back to the nation he grew up in because helping people is why he became a doctor in the first place. The destruction he saw will never leave his mind.
“The country is being destroyed. Every house is being destroyed. You find burned areas, farms being burned, animals being killed,” said Jondy, 73, of Flushing. “I don’t know how these people still function under these conditions.”
Jondy spent almost three weeks in Syria, where fighting between rebels and the regime of President Bashar Assad has caused destruction among the cities for the past 18 months.
Because of the uprising, many Syrian people were left without food, water, shelter or medical care.
While Jondy spent Sept. 1 to 19 in the northern part of Syria, he did a total of 23 surgeries. He was frustrated that he couldn’t do more.
There were no more hospitals in the cities, because they were all destroyed. Many houses and buildings had been bombed.
All doctors and surgeons have left the area because they were targeted by the government, Jondy said. Surgeries were done in the basements of houses and other buildings so the government wouldn’t find out.
Without the proper facilities, it was difficult to do more difficult surgeries, so Jondy was limited to minor surgeries, such as fixing hernias, ruptured gall bladders and ruptured appendixes.
Major surgeries require blood transfusions, an intensive care unit and a more sterile environment, which was non-existent in Syria.
Jondy, who actively speaks out against the regime, could not fly directly into Syria because it was too dangerous for him. His trip was organized through the Syrian American Medical Society and he flew into Turkey and then drove to the Syrian border.
“It’s a really sad story. ... Everybody you see has lost a loved one,” Jondy said. “I’m thinking about (what I saw) so much, to be honest with you. I would like to offer more help if I can, but I don’t know how. I am very frustrated about it.”
Crossing into Syria, Jondy said he was happy to see the Free Syrian Army controlling the border. He spent most of his time in three cities, but he often tried to take some patients into Turkey to get CT scans or other needed treatment that was not available to him in Syria.
Muna Jondy, Abdelmajid’s daughter, said the trip to Syria was a great experience for her father.
“I think it was great. It was great for him. And it’s nice to give back,” said Muna Jondy, president of the national nonprofit organization United for Free Syria. “After a day, he said, ‘I want to go back.’ ... Even though he didn’t go to see his family or go to the area he was from, still he felt like the struggle these people were going through, the least (he) can do was see what (he) can do to help.”
But the risk was very high, Muna Jondy said. When her father left for Syria, her family had tears in their eyes, unsure if they would see him again.
The government in Syria makes it very dangerous for people like her father, said Muna Jondy, an immigration attorney in Flint. But she was glad he was able to have that experience and make it home safely.
Things need to change in Syria, though, she said.
At first, Syrian citizens wanted a reform of the regime. Now, however, they urge for the fall of the regime, said Muna Jondy, 37, of Flushing Township.
“We need to get rid of this tyrant. These people are suffering so bad. ... Enough killing, enough destruction,” Abdelmajid Jondy said. “Now, the whole world is watching. It is time for the United States to step in and support the Syrian people. . Please support the Free Syrian Army.”
Jondy went to Syria with a bag of medical supplies and a carry-on bag. He left with the clothes on his back, his passport and his wallet. Everything else he left with the people in Syria.
“It felt so good to be there working with them, helping them. When I left, it was really tough on them for me to leave. It was tough on me, too. I have to go back,” he said.
